No new insurgency group in Kebbi — Commissioner

July 1, 2026 3:01 pm

Kebbi State Commissioner for Information and Culture, Alhaji Yakubu Ahmed, has dismissed reports of the emergence of a new insurgent group in the state known as “Sai Malam.”

Ahmed stated this while leading a high-level media delegation on a courtesy visit to the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria, Malam Ali M. Ali, in Abuja on Tuesday.

He described the claim as “an outright lie” and a calculated act of misinformation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The commissioner also dismissed a media report alleging that more than 130 children die daily in the state due to a high child mortality rate, describing it as false.

According to him, investigations by relevant security agencies revealed that the group being referred to as “Sai Malam” consists of young people involved in cybercrime and online extortion.

“When that information was dished out, it alarmed virtually everybody. We were inundated in Kebbi State with calls from across the country and beyond about the authenticity of that information.

“Fortunately for us, the Department of State Services (DSS) and the police launched painstaking investigations to unravel the truth.

“What they found out was that instead of a terror group, what we are talking about is a group of young people who are into cybercrime, manipulating computers and reaching out to government officials and people they believe have money.

“Arrests have already been made. These are the same people who call themselves Yan Vocal. It is these ‘Yan Vocal’ people that are now being referred to as Sai Malam,” he said.

Ahmed further alleged that investigations showed the misinformation was sponsored by opposition elements for political gains.

He said the state government had been contending with opposition figures spreading what he described as disinformation and half-truths to discredit the administration.

“They exaggerate situations, thinking they will make some political gains out of them.

“Just a few days ago, it was reported on the BBC Hausa Service that more than 130 children are dying in Kebbi State daily,” he said.

According to him, the statistics were fabricated to portray the administration of Governor Nasir Idris in a bad light ahead of the next general election.

“You can imagine, and we have less than half a million people in that age category. If 130 children were dying daily, in the next one year there would be no child left in Kebbi State. So that is a complete lie.

“In fact, UNICEF, which was said to have issued that statement, reached out to us and said the information did not come from them,” he said.

The commissioner sought NAN’s collaboration in sensitising the public and projecting what he described as the achievements of the Idris administration.

“They (the opposition) are thinking that all this disinformation and these half-truths will pave the way for them to take power in the next election.

“So, we solicit your cooperation in enlightening the public on these issues and assisting the Kebbi State Government to reach the larger Nigerian community with information on the unprecedented achievements recorded by this government in the last three years,” Ahmed said.

In his remarks, the NAN Managing Director said the rise of citizen journalism and artificial intelligence (AI) had made it easier for fake news to spread.

He recalled hearing the report on the radio and welcomed the state’s official rebuttal.

“When I listened to the BBC report about the mortality rate there, it was very disturbing. I waited for a while to see a rebuttal, and now it has come,” he said.

Ali assured the delegation that NAN, as Africa’s largest news content provider with about 600 field reporters operating under strict standards of factual accuracy, would continue to partner with the state government in projecting accurate information.

While commending the delegation’s information management efforts, he urged government communicators to be more proactive.

“Kebbi State, under the present administration, is a mixed picture. On one hand, people see the governor breaking boundaries and reforming a decaying system through infrastructure development.

“On the other hand, issues of insecurity, though not limited to the state, are sometimes misrepresented.

“My counsel to you and your team of excellent professionals is to always be the first with the story — the truth.

“Be the first. Don’t be on the defensive. Go on the offensive. Like you rightly said, elections are around the corner. This is the time you all have to be very vigilant. Fake stories abound. People are more inclined to believe sensationalism.

“In NAN, we don’t have that luxury. We always report factually. That’s why over the years we have come to be trusted. People always say unless they see it in NAN, they don’t believe it.

“But in these days of citizen journalism and AI, it’s quite difficult sometimes for the ordinary person to differentiate between what is real and what is fake,” he said.

NAN reports that other members of the delegation included the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Yahaya Sarki; the Special Adviser on Communications Strategy, Abdullahi Zuru; the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Ahmed Idris; the Special Adviser on Public Enlightenment and Orientation, Ibrahim Jombali; and the Special Adviser on New Media, Aliyu Bandado.

(NAN)

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